Apple Maps transit directions come to Atlanta, Miami & UK's National Rail

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in iPhone
Apple on Thursday expanded the availability of Maps transit directions to the US cities of Atlanta and Miami, and to National Rail lines in the United Kingdom.




Users of the iOS and OS X Maps apps can now navigate around Atlanta and Miami's bus and rail systems. Different lines are marked with their official icons, and where possible the apps will present several route combinations to choose from.

National Rail support is particularly important for residents of the U.K., since it incorporates a number of different rail systems spanning the countryside and various cities. The addition should enable cross-country trips, though some cities have their own separate public transportation systems.




Maps' transit support is still relatively limited. Only a handful of cities in the U.S. are covered, and support is typically even thinner in other countries, which may have only one or two cities if any. An exception to this is China.

Apple could conceivably be planning to widening transit support with the launch of iOS 10 and the next version of OS X, both of which will probably arrive in the fall. The company will be previewing the pair at next week's Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 12
    elijahgelijahg Posts: 2,759member
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones? ;) 
  • Reply 2 of 12
    Rayz2016Rayz2016 Posts: 6,957member
    So Maps will now tell you when it's too hot for the trains to run, when there are too many leaves on the lines for the trains to run, and when the trains can't run because we've got 'the wrong kind of snow'. 

    chiaelijahg
  • Reply 3 of 12
    command_fcommand_f Posts: 422member
    This stuff isn't easy so my hopes weren't high. I tried a couple of routes on National Rail in the UK and got sensible answers, including two alerts of current conditions (one being a vehicle that's caused disruption on the main line). That looks like good answers with approaching-real-time updates.

    I don't often praise Apple's Maps but this looks good.
    ai46lostkiwi
  • Reply 4 of 12
    paulmjohnsonpaulmjohnson Posts: 1,380member
    elijahg said:
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones? ;) 
    It's also a bit confused if, based on the screenshot, going from London to Yorkshire involves going through Haywards Heath!
    elijahg
  • Reply 5 of 12
    lostkiwilostkiwi Posts: 639member
    elijahg said:
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones? ;) 
    You know nothing, John Snow. 
    :-)
    badmonkRayz2016
  • Reply 6 of 12
    paulmjohnsonpaulmjohnson Posts: 1,380member
    elijahg said:
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones? ;) 
    God, I've just looked - I didn't quite realize what you mean; you're right, the East Coast Mainline stops at Peterborough and the West Coast stops at Liverpool.

    So, where the article says it's added National Rail to the United Kingdom that is, in fact, not true.  It's added rail to a little bit of the UK.

    Maps continues to be so far behind Google Maps it's just not true.  I much prefer Apples UI, but it's features are still sadly lacking, and this is almost 4 years after what even Apple seemed to acknowledge was a disastrous release.
  • Reply 7 of 12
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    Great!  Google Maps still has cycling routes over Maps, but main line trains narrows the gap a long way. Shame about the northern omissions, people up there have enough to be miserable about ;)
  • Reply 8 of 12
    foggyhillfoggyhill Posts: 4,767member
    paulmjohnson said:
    elijahg said:
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones? ;) 
    God, I've just looked - I didn't quite realize what you mean; you're right, the East Coast Mainline stops at Peterborough and the West Coast stops at Liverpool.

    So, where the article says it's added National Rail to the United Kingdom that is, in fact, not true.  It's added rail to a little bit of the UK.

    Maps continues to be so far behind Google Maps it's just not true.  I much prefer Apples UI, but it's features are still sadly lacking, and this is almost 4 years after what even Apple seemed to acknowledge was a disastrous release.
    The release was disastrous but it has improved massively. Google has a nearly decade head start and still has around 3 errors just in my god damn neighborhood that are still not fixed sending people coming to my place the wrong way!.
  • Reply 9 of 12
    paulmjohnsonpaulmjohnson Posts: 1,380member
    foggyhill said:
    paulmjohnson said:
    God, I've just looked - I didn't quite realize what you mean; you're right, the East Coast Mainline stops at Peterborough and the West Coast stops at Liverpool.

    So, where the article says it's added National Rail to the United Kingdom that is, in fact, not true.  It's added rail to a little bit of the UK.

    Maps continues to be so far behind Google Maps it's just not true.  I much prefer Apples UI, but it's features are still sadly lacking, and this is almost 4 years after what even Apple seemed to acknowledge was a disastrous release.
    The release was disastrous but it has improved massively. Google has a nearly decade head start and still has around 3 errors just in my god damn neighborhood that are still not fixed sending people coming to my place the wrong way!.
    Ha ha!  That sucks!

    I know Google had a decade head start, but honestly, I don't care.  Google can do transit directions in far more places (including all over the UK, which is important for me when I go to visit family), has cycling routes all over the Bay Area (and I assume all over the place) and has a much better search.

    The fact that Google had a head start is Apples problem, not the consumers.

    When things were reversed, and Apple had a massive head start on Google with regards iOS vs. Android, people on this site happily laugh as Google continually remain behind Apple in their quest to copy their way to feature parity.  Well, for me, it goes the same the other way.
    singularity
  • Reply 10 of 12
    elijahgelijahg Posts: 2,759member
    elijahg said:
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones?  
    It's also a bit confused if, based on the screenshot, going from London to Yorkshire involves going through Haywards Heath!
    Ha, I'd not spotted that! Though with the terrible search, I wouldn't be surprised if it thought you were after the nearest (or furthest) Yorkshire pudding shop.


    elijahg said:
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones?  
    God, I've just looked - I didn't quite realize what you mean; you're right, the East Coast Mainline stops at Peterborough and the West Coast stops at Liverpool.

    So, where the article says it's added National Rail to the United Kingdom that is, in fact, not true.  It's added rail to a little bit of the UK.

    Maps continues to be so far behind Google Maps it's just not true.  I much prefer Apples UI, but it's features are still sadly lacking, and this is almost 4 years after what even Apple seemed to acknowledge was a disastrous release.

    It's pretty useless to have only some of it, not everyone lives in London..! For example, going from Oxford to Milton Keynes (about 15 miles as the crow flies), Maps suggests getting a bus (?!) 60 miles into central London, then getting a train back to Milton Keynes, another 60 miles, totalling over 3 hours. The national rail website takes you through Coventry instead, about 40 miles and about an hour and 15 mins...

    Peterborough to Rugby is similar, 4 hours 30 mins for a journey that's 2 hours on the national rail site, or about 50 minutes by car.

    At the current rate Apple's adding public transport (and flyover locations), they won't have done even 1% of locations by the end of the next decade.
    edited June 2016
  • Reply 11 of 12
    Rayz2016Rayz2016 Posts: 6,957member
    crowley said:
    Great!  Google Maps still has cycling routes over Maps, but main line trains narrows the gap a long way. Shame about the northern omissions, people up there have enough to be miserable about
    You'd think a company like Apple would at least show them a way out.   :|
    edited June 2016 elijahg
  • Reply 12 of 12
    Rayz2016Rayz2016 Posts: 6,957member
    paulmjohnson said:
    elijahg said:
    That's great but it seems Apple's forgotten there are rail lines north of Leicester. Maybe it's just because Northerners can't afford iPhones? ;) 
    God, I've just looked - I didn't quite realize what you mean; you're right, the East Coast Mainline stops at Peterborough and the West Coast stops at Liverpool.

    So, where the article says it's added National Rail to the United Kingdom that is, in fact, not true.  It's added rail to a little bit of the UK.

    Maps continues to be so far behind Google Maps it's just not true.  I much prefer Apples UI, but it's features are still sadly lacking, and this is almost 4 years after what even Apple seemed to acknowledge was a disastrous release.
    According to Apple Maps, Scotland doesn't have a rail network. 

    To to be honest, I'm not sure England has one either. 
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